


curled pages

by sarangway



Category: SF9 (Band), sensational feeling 9
Genre: Alternate Universe - Library, Cute, Fluff, Happy Ending, Library AU, Light Angst, M/M, it ends well though because i'm a sucker for good endings and for jaeseong, some fluff but also angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-24
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-01 21:59:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8639776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarangway/pseuds/sarangway
Summary: kim Inseong is a librarian and college student, lee Jaeyoon is a total mess of a college student that seems to suddenly love the library.





	1. wrong aisle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> strange people can come into the library sometimes, but none peak inseong's interest.

                It was a surprisingly slow night in the library, the fall breeze stopping at the sturdy wooden doors. It was a popular library in the city, often frequented by college students during midterms. This week was popular during the later hours, dark circles and coffee cups littering the tables, along with the murmur of chapter names and vocabulary. Kim Inseong found himself reorganizing the shelves rather often, but considering he was a college student himself he found it was a little easier to forgive. Midterms were a chore, but he didn’t find them so difficult that midnight was spent reviewing.

                Regardless, it was a Friday night, which explained the sparseness of students. The ones who did come, however, were clearly the shining students and were longtime users of the library rather than the type to make last minute efforts. This made Inseong’s job very easy, his soft hands moving to curl around the folded fabric of his turtleneck and adjust it. The book he was reading currently was very immersive, the worn pages showing that it was a common opinion. His midterms were over just yesterday, so it was a relaxing late night, the clock above him moving to read nine p.m.

                However, the silvery bell over the door interrupted his focus, his eyes sweeping over the page to check the doorway. Wrapped up in a scarf, a boy that looked just slightly shorter than him stood at the doorway, giving a cursory glance around the library, just catching Inseong’s eyes for a moment before loosening his backpack straps and making his way to the desk. Inseong bookmarked his place and watched him until he stood in front of him. “Hello, do you need something?”

                The boy gave a bright smile, dimples forming in his cheeks. “Uh, yeah. I was wondering where the communications aisle is?” Inseong’s response lagged for a moment, his eyes strangely focused on the dusted pink skin. His mouth seemed to lag as well, mumbling out a number that he couldn’t recall the moment that the boy turned and walked off. Inseong’s eyes wandered around the counter, his eyebrows furrowing as he picked up the book again.

                Just a few moments later the boy came back, his finger tapping on the page and attracting Inseong’s attention. He blinked a few times, the expression on the boy’s face changed a bit too quickly for Inseong to not be startled. “Ah, yes?”

                “The aisle had children’s books in it.” The boy gave a look slightly tainted with annoyance as he leaned on the counter, placing his face in his hands. Inseong couldn’t help but get distracted again, his eyes averting quickly and his hands darting under the counter to grab the aisle list. His finger moved to the title ‘communications’, glancing up.

                “I apologize. This is the right one.” His turtleneck was a bit restricting suddenly, the strong gaze making him a bit embarrassed. The boy nodded, pointing at his nametag.

                “Kim Inseong?” The boy nodded, huffing a little and straightening himself back up. Inseong frowned at him leaving so suddenly, still a bit flustered. Unfortunately, just before he decided to pick the book back up, he heard a voice speak behind him.

                “Inseong-hyung? Can you get The Wealth of Nations from the economics aisle? Someone called to reserve it but I’m reorganizing the database.” Kang Chanhee stood in the doorway, holding the phone to his chest. Inseong nodded, pushing his chair out as Chanhee smiled and reentered the office. After glancing at the aisle list one more time, he walked over, his hands tucked into his sweater’s pockets.  

                This wasn’t an aisle that he went into often, so it took him a few moments before finding the book. He pulled it out, suddenly surprised at the book on the other side being pulled out too, leaving a small window between both aisles. Of course, the person on the other side was the boy from the counter earlier. “Oh! So now you’re following me?”

               Before Inseong could interject, the boy stuck a hand through the hole, gesturing for Inseong’s. He hesitated, his softly slipped his into the boy’s. “Lee Jaeyoon, please take care of me next time.” Jaeyoon released his hand and put the book back into the slot, the quiet pattering of his feet fading slowly.

                Inseong slowly made his way back to the counter after putting a few strewn books back on the shelves, setting the requested book down. He sighed and sat down, keeping his eyes on the ceiling, his hand moving to the book to feel something on top of it. His eyes trailed back to see a children’s book on top of his, a small post-it note with a scribbled note reading “this was laying on the ground, please be careful”. The title of the book was _Fox Makes Friends_. Inseong chuckled, stifling his laugh from becoming louder.


	2. a little longer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inseong has no time for a certain boy to force him into staying after-hours..

                After a week or so, the library had calmed down with the number of people decreasing steadily. That was fine with Inseong, it allowed his job to be smoother and more open to study time. Though, his afternoons and nights did seem slightly empty without the bustle of hardworking students, which was instead replaced by shuffling of older people’s shoes and the murmurs of mothers reading to their children. Of course, these noises were nice as well, but something was…missing.

                The hours dragged on, his interest perking as a child checked out _Fox Makes Friends,_ his hand trying to hide his smile at the memory of the strange boy. As people left and the hour grew towards eleven, closing, he lingered around the aisles to pick up books and push in chairs. As much as he wanted to close early, he knew that Chanhee would be upset that he didn’t follow the rules. Still, he was younger and it didn’t matter.

                Whether it was a blessing or a curse, he heard the small bell over the door ding as someone seemed to enter. Glancing at the clock, which read ten-thirty, Inseong furrowed his eyebrows. What sort of person would come in thirty minutes before closing? Was what they had to do _really_ that urgent? Nonetheless, he couldn’t tell them that they weren’t allowed in even if it was annoying.

                Hopefully it would just be someone that forgot their notebook or something similar, his mind rambled as he turned the corner to peer at the couches and chairs formed around various sized tables. To his dismay, a student had sat down and settled in, their papers scattered around the table, pencil already flying despite being there for such a short time. Well, it seemed like it was a close deadline, which would mean they would get their research and leave. He wasn’t sure if it was better to ask if they needed something or not disrupt them, so he walked over cautiously, trying to catch who this boy was.

                With his luck, it seemed to be the very Lee Jaeyoon that had been there what seemed like yesterday, however a bit more frantic. Inseong peered over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of what seemed to be an English essay. It wasn’t a very difficultly worded essay, a basic understanding of the language still seen. It made him smile a bit, his memories of London flooding back, even if it was when he was eleven.

                The essay seemed to be about singing or something like that, he could only catch a ‘I like singing’ from where he was standing. He felt a little strange to be looking over his shoulder like this so he took a few steps back…until he was caught with a hand on his arm.

                “What? You seemed to understand, huh?” Jaeyoon pulled him, tugging him towards the seat next to him. Inseong sat down quickly even with being so startled at the reaction. Glancing up from the hand on his arm, he noticed the dimpled smile paired with new glasses. “Tell me, eavesdropper, what this means in Korean?”

                Jaeyoon pointed at the sentence he had just written - something basic about singing being fun or something similar. Inseong blinked, looking up at him and back at the paper and taking a breath. “Ah, well, it says that you enjoy singing because it’s fun to do.”

                The expression Jaeyoon had before melted almost instantly and was replaced with a mix of awe and surprise. He knew that people had taken the English class considering the class size, but he was surprised at the fact that he described it significantly better than what he had written. He leaned in towards Inseong with shining eyes and a fake cute expression. “Inseong-oppa~ please help me write this!”

                Inseong cringed at the sudden cutesy act; there was no reason to help him when it wasn’t his homework. Besides which he didn’t know him and it would be cheating. “What’s with the ‘oppa’? Besides, I’m working, and we close in…” Glancing at the clock just made the minutes go faster it seemed. “…fifteen minutes. So, you should wrap this up.”

                “I’m being cute so you’ll help me! You aren’t really going to close when I’m trying to study, are you?” Jaeyoon frowned, leaning his chin in his hand. Inseong unfortunately knew that he wasn’t allowed to close until the people inside leave. “C’mon! You know this library better than me!”

                He knew that Jaeyoon was right, but still it was such an inconvenience and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to help him either. However, it would get him out faster if he helped... “Fine.”

                Jaeyoon made hand hearts and grinned. “Thank you, Inseong-oppa~!” Inseong held his cringing inside as Jaeyoon handed him the paper and the pencil. “Ah, so write this down.”

                “What do you mean write this down? I’m helping you, not doing it for you!”

                “Hey! I’m older than you, don’t talk back!” Jaeyoon waved his finger at him, huffing.

                “Older than me? How do you know that?” Inseong found his argument a bit lacking considering he had never told him how old he was. Perhaps he appeared younger to him.

                “Kang Chanhee told me.” He sure seemed proud of himself, Inseong noted. “Now. For me, singing is a passion. I’m even called a honey voice!”

                A chuckle escaped his lips, his fingers moving to write as he continued to talk about himself. It was interesting to hear Jaeyoon talk about himself. Though, it was a strange way to get to know someone…even if he was so fun to listen to. He had an eccentric way to describe what he loved, a way that made him feel how much he enjoyed it. Flashes of his own sketchbooks made it rather easy to relate.

                Close to probably forty-five minutes later, the essay was finally written and Jaeyoon had packed his stuff away into his bag. They walked out together, the door locking automatically after the alarm had been set. Standing bundled under the light, all they could give each other was awkward nods as if they wouldn’t meet again, with silent smiles and hopes that they would.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> find me on tumblr a @sarangway and @snowdawon!


	3. sipping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inseong decided to bring a coffee to finally be nice to the disshelved boy.

                The coffee gave off billowing clouds of peppermint steam, twirling out from the softly puffed milk and through the hole to drink from. Today was a little brighter, the grayed-out clouds easier on the eyes than the day before. The last few days had been heart-racing ones: his midterm grades being flying colors, someone asking for his art to be featured in their magazine, and a flashing memory of the boy that couldn’t seem to leave his mind. Really, it was frustrating. Inseong had only met him twice after all.

                But still, he felt like he was the sort of boy to need a cup a day…but he was also rather hyper so he wasn’t sure. Either way it was a kind gesture and he secretly hoped that he would come in today.

                The magazine had been printed just a few hours ago and the copy was given to him as he walked into his shift. It was a beautiful layout, this edition showcasing artist of the area and trying to give a diverse idea of who artists were. There was a real variety, everyone from the college student like him to a lawyer. Nothing was as satisfying as seeing his own art in a print form alongside these successful people. Once Chanhee or Dawon came in, he would be sure to show it off. His mind strangely wondering to if the Lee Jaeyoon character had seen the magazine was quickly snapped back into place when he noticed the bell over the door ring. Was that him, he wondered? A disappointing glance at the door disproved that idea, a small sigh escaping as his eyes focused back on the magazine.

                His shift crept on rather slowly from then, more of a “as-per-usual” sort of day instead of an exciting one. What felt like a few hours was really just thirty minutes or so, and fifteen of them were spent glancing over at the door. His observations led him to realize that it was raining outside, which made the coffee he had brought look rather appealing to him. But, he had to hold back and wait just in case.

                Another five minutes of waiting left him impatient, however, and he asked Chanhee once he came in to cover the counter. Organizing the newly donated books would get the rest off his mind, hopefully. A few of these titles led him to realize he did need to go back through and check out some himself once he had the time, his fingers grazing the covers to trace the Hangeul a few times. He was caught in the middle of it by Chanhee poking his head in. “Ah! Hyung, someone is asking for you at the counter.”

                Embarrassingly enough, he got a little excited as he left the storage room and reentered the main library. As expected, Jaeyoon stood there, his cheeks slightly rosy from the cold and his hair a bit damp and wavy from the rain. In his hand, however, was a coffee cup.

                “Thanks, Chanhee.”

                “No problem, Jaeyoon-nim.” Chanhee gave a small head nod to Inseong before returning to finish sorting the books. There was an awkward pause before Inseong sat down in his chair, his eyes darting to the coffee cup meant for Jaeyoon and back at his hands.

                Jaeyoon loosened his scarf, running a hand through his hair and setting the coffee on the counter. “Man, it’s cold out there, thank God for heaters.”

                “Uh, yes. It’s kind of warm in here.” It was difficult to keep a pout off of his face, especially since everything seemed to show whether he liked it or not.

                “Oh! Before I forget,” Jaeyoon pushed the coffee cup towards Inseong, giving that dimpled smile that was surprisingly bright for a fall day. “this is yours as some thanks for helping me with that essay. I got full credit and my teacher used it as an example.”

                “Mine? But I got you a cup too…” Inseong pulled the clearly cooled down cup towards him, frowning a bit that it wasn’t warm anymore. Jaeyoon chuckled at his reaction, waving his hand. After all, the cup that he had given was not only kind of cold but also a little wet.

                Despite Inseong’s protests – which were honestly rather fake either way – Jaeyoon had convinced him, since he was older, to sit and have coffee with him. Inseong decided to show him the magazine, Jaeyoon insisting on seeing more art, which led into at least an hour of his shift used by showing him pictures on his phone and murmuring about the daily events each had.

                The coffee was sweet until he realized it was the last few sips, which was also the last few minutes of his excuse to not work. For Jaeyoon, it was the same case. “Hm…I have to go once I’m done with this…you should draw me before I go.”

                “Jaeyoon-ssi-”

                “Jaeyoon- _sunbae_.”

                Inseong swirled his coffee a bit, the idea of three meetings meaning they weren’t acquaintances anymore making him a bit nervous. “What year were you born in if you claim to be older than me?”

                “1994, I’m 23.” Jaeyoon said it with a cocked eyebrow, taking one of the few sips left of his drink. Inseong narrowed his eyes, closing the magazine.

                “I was born in 1993, I’m 24, and older than you.” Jaeyoon seemed rather surprised at this information, sulking a bit at his lack of seniority.

                “But Chanhee told me…man, does that mean I have to call you sunbae then? Or would you rather I called you hyung?”

Inseong quickly corrected him, his expression still scowling a bit, “Ssi is fine.”

                “Omo! So harsh…” Jaeyoon let his grumbling fade as he looked over at the clock and to his phone screen. “Well, this is all I can do today, as fun as this was.”

                They stood up in sync, taking a moment to hide their laugh before giving a slight head bow. Inseong walked back to his desk as Jaeyoon picked up his bag and the book that he was looking for that day. After everything was set and the cups were properly thrown away, Jaeyoon waved goodbye with a ‘see you tomorrow, Inseong-hyung!’ and Inseong’s ‘hey!’ in quick reply.

                What was that about?  And how in the world could Chanhee not know his age properly if he called him hyung? After Chanhee had come to switch shifts, Inseong asked him suspiciously, “Chanhee, did you tell that guy that I was younger than him?”

                Chanhee looked confused, his mouth slightly agape as he shook his head. “Of course not, hyung, I told him you were older by a year.”

                The older blinked a few times, the recall of his ‘Inseong-hyung’ making him slap his cheeks a bit. Surely this guy was a bit of a punk, but he had drawn him in as more interesting. At least interesting enough to find that he had unknowingly draw all over the receipt pad, sketches of this ‘sunbae’ drinking, the light falling rather softly on his features.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> check me out on tumblr @sarangway and @snowdawon!


	4. miscommunication

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> maybe Inseong was wrong to expect that Jaeyoon would never get a girlfriend.

Considering a good portion of this shift was spent doing all the ‘dirty’ jobs – say, for example, cleaning up after that toddler with the stomach flu – Inseong wasn’t in the brightest of moods. Everything that he stumbled on was very frustrating, causing even Chanhee to force him to sit down and take a deep breath. He really wasn’t sure how the world could flip so suddenly considering last week was so bright, maybe it had something to do with Jaeyoon not coming in even once, but he just wanted it to end.

“Hey, hyung…do you need the day off maybe?” Chanhee seemed rather concerned at the annoyed aura that loomed around Inseong. Normally he would be appreciative towards him for being worried, but today he was just frustrated.

“I’d like a day off, obviously, but I know that it’s not realistic and I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t talk about it!”

Chanhee nodded, taken back by the sudden snapping. Inseong instantly felt guilty, his hands gripping the binding of the book he held. If he was honest, Jaeyoon coming in would allow him to cheer up a bit. His wish was granted as he heard the bell over the door and peaked his head around the aisle. His heart relaxed as he watched him walk in, but he felt it constrict when he noticed the girl hanging off his shoulder. As if this wasn’t the worst day before, he had to come in with some girl? Were they on a date, perhaps? Inseong knew that there was no reason for him to get so defensive when he barely knew him, but it still felt faintly like a betrayal.

Clearly, he wasn’t thinking with his head today, and he couldn’t help but glare at them as they passed by. However, he noticed that Jaeyoon caught his eye and began walking over. In a panic, Inseong ducked into another aisle and sat down, making sure he was behind a stack of books that were unsorted. This was such a childish thing to do, but he was beyond aggravated and this was all he could do.

He could hear Jaeyoon call for him and whoever the girl was insist that they should just sit down and wait. He wanted Jaeyoon to come after him. He wanted a meeting where he held a hand out and lifted him up. Yet, he could hear the soft shoes tred across the padded carpet. Inseong curled up, tucking his head between his legs and sitting there. Today was really too frustrating to deal with, and he couldn’t deal with anyone anymore.

Maybe it was immature, but he decided to stay there for another twenty minutes, softly rocking back and forth. He admittedly would stop and peak around the corner to check on what Jaeyoon was doing. Regardless, he refused to go and see him and he would hide back in the aisle when he saw his head move. Hopefully there wasn’t anything that Chanhee needed him for, it really didn’t seem busy. That was until he heard walking and looked up to see a very confused college student looking at him. Inseong cleared his throat and stood up, picking up the glasses he folded and put down next to him. “Er, headaches, am I right?”

As much as he hated it, he had to get over whatever it was he was dealing with and get back to work. Or at least tell Chanhee that he was going home early. Once he had caught up to him, however, he got a handful of books and was asked to deliver them to the table. The table was unfortunately the exact one he was avoiding and he hesitated before beginning to slowly walk over, his head ducked behind the stack.

“Here.” Inseong mumbled and set the books down, keeping his face hidden by bowing low and turning before they could notice. He heard Jaeyoon shuffle and it sounded like the chair moved, so Inseong sped up and turned into another aisle.

“Inseongie~!” Inseong frowned at the dropped formality and kept walking, just narrowly avoiding a stack of books that would force him to fall. “Are you running away from me? How old are you again?”

Inseong had to suppress a smile, his hand moving to cover it and moving around the next bend. There were really too many aisles in the library, and once you had gotten far enough they were set up differently. They weaved through the thousands of books until Inseong found himself being pulled back by Jaeyoon’s hands. Inseong let out a faint squeak and felt himself be pinned to the bookself, Jaeyoon grinning at him.

Their eye contact didn’t falter as much as the older wanted it to. Jaeyoon’s hands wrapped around his wrists and he cocked an eyebrow. “Why did you run away?”

“Er…I’m not feeling well. I was going to go home so I didn’t have time.”

“Really? Why didn’t you run for the door then?”

Inseong blinked at the question and found himself dumbfounded. “Well…I still have something to wrap up…”

“Are you sure you weren’t avoiding me? I missed you, you know. It’s been a few days and I was looking forward to seeing you.” Jaeyoon pouted at him, his grip loosening and Inseong wiggling out of it. Inseong tried to playfully shove him, but Jaeyoon had hooked an arm around him and they ended up tumbling backwards, Inseong grabbing Jaeyoon’s head to prevent him from slamming into the bookshelf. Stunned for a moment, they laid on the carpeted floor with Jaeyoon’s head tucked in the crook of Inseong’s neck. “Can you let me go?”

Inseong felt his face heat up and he removed his hand from his neck quickly. If the arm wasn’t still looped around his waist, he would have gotten up and ran all the way home – even though he had to ride the bus to work. They stayed there for maybe a moment longer, staring at each other with the awkwardness increasing exponentially. “I was jealous.”

“Jealous? Of what?” Jaeyoon giggled at the confession and the strange situation to be confessing in.

“The girl you came in with. I got jealous so I didn’t want to talk to you.”

“What right do you have to be jealous of Chanmi-ah?” At Inseong’s embarrassed expression Jaeyoon let out a loud laugh, entirely inappropriate for a library. “She’s like my sister! Do you expect me to be going around dating every girl I meet?”

Inseong was thoroughly ashamed of his assumption and would appreciate it if the floor could open up and suck him into it. When he thought about it now, it was a strangely rude thing to assume about someone – but when he thought about it originally it made sense. Inseong quickly removed the arm from his back and stood up, bowing to Jaeyoon. “I apologize for my assumptions and falling on you!” After his hurried apology, he scurried off to grab his bag and head out of the library.

Jaeyoon remained on the floor giggling for another few minutes, his laugh fading as he stared up at the ceiling. “I can’t believe he left me without helping me get up.”


	5. soft carpet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inseong has to stay late and Jaeyoon decided to sneak in.

               If you told Inseong that he had to stay over the whole night to reorganize the books, Inseong would tell you that you were crazy and that there was no way in hell that he would waste an entire night. But, suddenly it was a little more interesting when Jaeyoon decided to sneak in as he was locking up. He didn’t really notice the younger boy, his footsteps hidden by the plopping of books to the carpeted floor. Suddenly a noise was made behind him and a head rested on his shoulder, making Inseong jump.

               “Yah!” A swift turn around and smack with a book made him catch on that it was Jaeyoon.

               “Wow, I come here to surprise you and you hit me?” Jaeyoon pouted, rubbing his arm in annoyance.

               “S-sorry, I didn’t know it was you.” Inseong rubbed his neck and bit his lip. “Why are you here, though?”

               Jaeyoon’s annoyed expression faded as he gave a wink, dancing around Inseong and picking up some of the books on the ground. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

               That was a very unnecessary and, from anyone else, annoying. Inseong also had a feeling that having him here would cause a giant reduction in productivity…especially considering how distracting Jaeyoon was just by existing. Even in _class_ Inseong’s mind wandered to that eccentric boy. If someone had asked him why, he wouldn’t really have an answer.

               He wasn’t going to get distracted today, though, no way. He had a lot of work to do: new shipments, a new organization system, and updates for the online catalog. And for some unknown reason, no one seemed to be available tonight. Maybe he should have lied about being busy as well – but then again nothing would have gotten done. That wasn’t his business really, especially since this was just a job to cover personal expenses outside of university.

               After only ten minutes of ignoring the other boy, he started to get antsy. “Inseongie~ why are you so busy?” No answer caused his whining to increase. “I have a lot of homework, y’know! Make this trip worth it!”

               “And how in the world do I do that?” Inseong’s short answer wasn’t unencouraging Jaeyoon as he expected it too, and instead caused the boy to grin.

               “Hm…let’s see. What did you do last time? Try to kiss me?”

               The room was very hot swiftly and Inseong’s grip on the book was tightened significantly. So much for him not getting distracted. “That was an accident, I wasn’t trying to kiss you!”

               “Oh, really? Well good. I don’t want to kiss you.” Jaeyoon’s smirk was going to be something that haunted Inseong until the end of time, the tremor in his hands not wanting to smooth out no matter how hard he gripped. White knuckles and pained fingers forced him to let go and come back to reality, only now noticing that Jaeyoon was removing books from the book cart and sitting on top of it, his legs swinging off the sides.

               There was no way that he would get distracted a second time, so his attention turned to removing the books and replacing them. The night might be young but he really would like the chance to leave early if he could. “Jaeyoon-ssi, get off the cart so I can use it.”

               Jaeyoon didn’t even blink at the request, remaining planted on the cart and not moving. Inseong sighed at the childishness the boy was showing, moving to push him off the cart. Jaeyoon thought quicker than him, though, and grabbed his wrist before he made contact. For a moment that felt vaguely like déjà vu, their faces were inches apart. But Inseong had no time for this, and a rush of adrenaline came with the rush of blood to his cheeks, his hands yanking away from Jaeyoon’s.

               Luckily, he took the hint and left him alone for at least another thirty minutes, Inseong managing to reorganize two of the aisles before becoming tired of the staring boring a hole in the back of his head. This was a lot more work than the others did, after all, so it was fair to take a break.

               “Alright fine…I’ll stop being boring.” Inseong’s eyes wandered to the boy who still sat on top of the cart, this time on his back and staring up at the ceiling. He sat up quickly though and grinned at the older boy, glad to know that he was ready to play along.

               Jaeyoon rocked a little, the cart wobbling (especially since it wasn’t made for a college student). “Let’s go~ let’s go~!”

               Inseong’s fingers wrapped around the metal handle, his eyes meeting Jaeyoon’s eager one. This was a terrible idea, and Inseong knew it, but there was something that encouraged him when he saw that bright smile, the deep dimples ending his hesitation. Just a few seconds later, the boys were giggling and running down the aisle, Jaeyoon’s hair flying surprisingly fast considering that they’re inside. The room was a lot like an obstacle course, the books laid on the floor causing sharp turns and squeals from Jaeyoon.

               Maybe it was just the coincidence of being tired and a little lonely after that couple came in here for a cheesy date, but Inseong realized then that he really craved Jaeyoon’s company when he was gone. Even if he was rather frustrating and he found himself complaining in all their conversations, he gave a soft light to the dullness of his job. That was cheesy and could most likely be found in the romance section here, and is exactly why he would keep that information to himself – to the grave if necessary. A sudden jab to the stomach made him yelp and slow down, an eager Jaeyoon barely recovering from his big smile and giggle fit.

               “I’ll push you so you don’t get tired!” Inseong, despite his brain screaming that this was very irresponsible and there were _thousands_ of books to put in order, sat right down and held on for dear life.

               His position now was much more appealing, the giddiness on Jaeyoon’s face much more visible when he didn’t have to focus on guiding the shaky cart. The saying about the smile being the most beautiful thing was really true right now, and his eyes stayed glued on the glowing aura that he gave off. The sharp turn made Inseong gasp, reaching and grabbing Jaeyoon’s hands on the bar. It felt like an electric zap, the energy he was giving on connecting with Inseong and making him start laughing also.

               Never in a million years would he think that his best college year moment so far would be zipping down library aisles with a boy he met maybe a month ago, but this unquestionably topped anything else he had experienced. There was some weird feeling that spread through him when he kept thinking about it, the idea of him leaving later being strange. What if he…spent the night here too? It was strange that it even popped up; considering that he wanted to go home early so badly just moments before.

               Another sudden turn led to a smack into the side of a bookshelf, causing the cart to turn over and Inseong to tumble off it. Jaeyoon let out a bark and tripped over the cart too, landing on top of Inseong in a position much like what they found themselves in before. It wasn’t awkward this time, though, it was just silent and intimate. They both didn’t know what to do, Inseong’s body shifting and their eyes locking.

               They weren’t sure what to do then, Inseong holding his breath and Jaeyoon deciding that rolling over to lay on his arm was the best idea. The silence remained and they both decided that maybe just listening to loud hearts beating was a better idea…for now anyway. Maybe when the phrase ‘I like him’ stopped playing incessantly, Inseong would bother moving Jaeyoon out of his arm.


	6. libraries are for books

It makes sense that Jaeyoon was always around, at least it did to Inseong. He had basically become an employee now, older women asking him for help and tiny children begging him to grab books on higher shelves. It was almost like a little library family – him, Inseong, and Chanhee (not Dawon because Inseong purposefully avoided his shifts), and it was something that made his job very worthwhile. It wasn’t anything more than a _friend_ thing, though, despite him thinking that his arm was a very soft pillow and he would be nice to lay on during a hot summer day, it was still a friend thing.

He was slacking again today, though, weaving through aisles and stopping to rearrange, until Jaeyoon would stop him with a back-hug or by leaning on his shoulder. Or maybe his fingers would entangle with his, simple acts to Jaeyoon it seemed, but something that would sidetrack him every time. It was hard to get used to the new organization system lately, remembering where to put books back being a hassle. Plus, there was a new live chat feature that Chanhee wanted to use, and that kept him busy and left Inseong with all the floor work.

Jaeyoon blew some air on his neck, causing Inseong to jump and turn around with a frown. “Yah! I’m working you know.”

He grinned back at him, taking out a book and flipping through it. “Librarian-sunbaenim, help me find a book.”

“Argh, Jaeyoon-”

“Please, I need to find a book.” Inseong narrowed his eyes, pressing his lips together and waiting for him to explain his ‘book’. Jaeyoon smiled at him giving in and put the book he held back where it was found before. “ _Fox Makes Friends_.”

“You’re an idiot.” Inseong threw a book and unfortunately, he ducked. “Let me go back to work.”

“Is that all you say? I swear half of the conversations we have are just you telling me to shut up and leave you alone.” His whining was not unnoticed, and Inseong flinched at the comment. Still, he ignored it and started walking back to the counter, his arms full. There was really no time to get distracted, not until it was empty. That was what he had done for the last few days at least, letting Chanhee do his homework from high school and playing around with Jaeyoon. Sometimes, when Chanhee was done early, he even pushed him around on the book cart. Chanhee wasn’t used to the whole Inseong being so adventurous thing, but he took it in as much as he could.

Jaeyoon was really loosening him up, and everyone in the library could tell. That wasn’t something that Inseong would admit any time soon, however.

Just a few hours later, the average rush of older people and mothers was dissipated, Jaeyoon and Inseong found themselves sitting in the aisles, reading books quietly to each other, giggles trapping themselves in the carpet they sat on. There was nothing funny in these books, really, but when one boy started laughing the other caught on extremely quick.

After another hour, their focus was lost and books were strewn around, changing their positions to play a few games of rock-paper-scissors. That was quickly thrown aside, and Jaeyoon decided that cheesy middle-school games were better – the whole Never Have I Ever and Would You Rather lot. They were a little hard for two players, so Jaeyoon settled on Two Truths and a Lie. It was simple enough, Inseong was glad to find, the hardest part finding interesting facts and believable lies.

A few rounds in, the lies were nearly impossible to come up with, and yet somehow Jaeyoon was having no troubles. “Alright. One: I love singing. Two: I dance. Three: I play guitar.”

Inseong frowned, finding this one actually rather hard. “That’s not fair, I know you sing.” He thought for a moment. “The dancing is a lie?”

“Of course not! I’m a great dancer.” Jaeyoon stood up to do a small dance, something that involved a strangely large amount of hip…moving that was very unnecessary. He quickly assured him that he believed him, and thankfully he sat down. “Okay, your turn!”

“Okay, er. One: I’m called a cat. Two: I’m called a fox. Three: I also sing.”

Jaeyoon squinted, tapping his chin as he thought for a moment. But he picked it up and let out a chuckle. “The truths are that you sing and you’re called a fox. Not because you’re a sly fox, like me, but because you kinda look like one.”

Inseong could have sworn that he didn’t tell him that, but he nodded in disbelief. “I’m not even going to ask how you got that.” The younger giggled, causing an eruption from both and Chanhee looking up from the counter. They quieted down, small laughs slipping out in between words. “So, your turn again.”

“Hmm…” He rocked a bit, Inseong drawing little circles in the carpet and waiting patiently. His waiting was quickly interrupted as Jaeyoon’s face was getting closer to his, his eye contact steady. Inseong moved to slide back, but his back was already against the bookshelf. “Okay, I have some.”

Inseong let out a shaky, “Good.”

“One: Chanhee is younger than me. Two: I’m a girl. Three: I want to kiss you.” Inseong scooted back a little further, feeling the book binding press against his back. “Well?”

He took a moment, but it wasn’t because he didn’t know the answer, rather because he knew _exactly_ what the answer was and it was slightly terrifying. Inseong opened his mouth to answer, but his breath was lost. “The…the lie. It’s…that you want to kiss me.” Inseong swallowed, regaining his voice for  moment. “I remember, you told me before.”

Jaeyoon grinned, moving a little closer, their noses just about to touch. “You’re wrong.” His hand slipped over the carpet to touch Inseong’s hand, slowly linking them together. “You’re very, very, _very_ wrong, Inseong.”

“Then do it.” He didn’t expect himself to let that out, but he also didn’t expect Jaeyoon to let out an ‘okay’ and smash their lips together. Inseong’s squeak was lost against Jaeyoon, and the kiss ended as abruptly as it started. Jaeyoon pulled back, sitting crisscross and grinning at Inseong as if he hadn’t just thrown the books off the shelves of his mind.

Jaeyoon rubbed his fingers on the top of Inseong’s hand, the library silent but filled with an air, an aura maybe, of unsolicited and unfiltered love, something that was so new to Inseong but welcomed the second that he felt it. Maybe libraries are meant for books, and not for kisses, but Inseong wouldn’t mind breaking a few rules.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> libraries are for books...not for kissing. that is.....if it was true of course. i am sad to say that this is the last chapter of curled pages! :( but not the last jaeseong fic i will do :0 i hope you ring in the new year well and i hope you are ready for a 2017 full of good fics <33

**Author's Note:**

> yo yo yo so i posted it on tumblr but this is a smart place too so i'm gonna double post nice  
> check me out @snowdawon and @sarangway


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